There so many origins of wicca and it's really hard to tell which is the truth and which is myth. I would like a little help in discussing some of them. That way we can differentiate facts from fictions
'Wicca' as it's known was 'invented' by Gerald Gardener when the laws in England were changed in the 50's and witches could practice without being thrown in jail for 5 years, Gardener wrote two books on the subject with witchcraft, this was dubbed Wicca and it started to grow in popularity. witchcraft has been around for centuries, but his path was the first brought into light, so it became the main form. other people began to publish their beliefs and paths, but the Gardener Wiccan path is the most common one to follow.
that's the basics i know about it mind. it was just the first person to publish their path and make it big. it could have been anyone else, but if it wasn't for the law being appealed in England, there may not be Wicca [or it would be decades later]
Yeah thanks for that reply.Though I already knew that it was nice of you to reply.
Anyway it was said that witchcraft has been around long before Gerald Gardner,some where between 3100 BC.
Sure Gerald brought witchcraft into light once again but it seems that the main religion started very long before that.
Magaret Murray's theory was considered false but if one look back into the past egyptians way of lives one would find things like The book of the dead filled with written spells used to help souls into the after life.
Another one says that Witchcraft can be traced back to early men. That women have always been magical creatures because; they could give birth and bleed without dying.
It was also said that through their everyday life they discovered the God and Goddess and that the christians somehow took one of the deity known as Yaweh then changed the name to Jahovah then turned the horned God into satan.
Still another source: the bible mention Witches and that was somewhere before christ too.
I don't think Witchcraft started in 1964 like they say, i think Wicca came to light then but it has been around way longer than that.
If so what is it's true origin?
What you have to bear in mind is that Wicca and Witchcraft aren't the same thing. Wicca is a modern day fertility-based Mystery Tradition (or neo-pagan religion if you must), which is traditionally oathbound, closed and initiatory, while Witchcraft is the practice of spells, charms, folk magic, spirit work, soul-flight, etc, which may or may not have religious overtones.
Most Wiccans employ a practice of Witchcraft or at least folk magic, but not all Witches are Wiccan. Of course 'Witch' and Wiccan' have been used interchangeably so often that the two frequently become confused. Also folks mean different things when they use 'Witch' or 'Wiccan' so it's generally prudent to ask them for their own definitions.
Sources;
Towards the Wiccan Circle by Sorita d'Este Light From the Shadows: A Mythos of Modern Traditional Witchcraft by 'Gwyn' (Mike Howard)
Particularly revealing is that Gardner claimed that the content of his Book of Shadows was ancient and handed down to him, but High Priestess of the Bricket Wood coven (Gardner's first Wiccan coven) noted that several items were actually from a multitude of known sources, including Aleister Crowley (who most certainly is not ancient).
Gradner's claim maybe false but if you remember because of the burning times and christian invasion witches at that time could not keep any information that could incriminate them and most of them lacked reading or writing skills.
So that could explain why not much information was passed down from our ancestors.
Yes i have read articles that says witchcraft and wicca are not the same and some that said wicca is actually the modern name for witchcraft.
There is still so little to prove anything but if one were to look closely they would realize that wicca is very similar to witchcraft.
I read that Wicca is actually a more comfortable name in this modern age than the hated name witch.
Here's the thing.. Wicca is a religion that is based around practicing witchcraft. Witchcraft itself is not a religion. That is why you will find many different religions that are involved with the practice.
Wicca is very modern!
Witchcraft goes back much further than a few thousand years. To really understand Witchcraft (and that is only the European title of the craft) one needs to go back to the times of the "hunter/ gatherers"; when the men hunted, and the women "gathered".
It was the women who learnt the value of plants; food, healing, even poisons! The men "experimented", the birth of Alchemy?
The subject entails a lot of study. And has very little to do with Wicca. One is a religion, the other is a Craft!
I guess that makes sense. Wicca is a new religion with similarities to Witchcraft, while witchcraft is and act or practice.
Then it's safe to say that witchcraft gave birth to the idea of wicca.
Sort of. It's important to note that we don't really know much about European witchracft, so Wicca was therefore very influenced by our ideas on witchcraft at least as much as it was by history. Also of note is that most of the actual magickal practices actually come from Free Masonry and the primarily Thelemic works of Aleister Crowley.
Let none of this diminish one's love for or belief in Wicca. However new the names and rituals may be, they tap into some very ancient and primal energies. The Horned Lord and the Triple Goddess are quite real and vey potent - just ask any Wiccan faithful who has worked with either of them.
